


Dream Ramblings

by damekestre



Series: Dreams of Reality [3]
Category: Gargoyles (Cartoon)
Genre: F/M, Not Canon Compliant
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-01
Updated: 2020-09-01
Packaged: 2021-03-05 02:08:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 1,653
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25006693
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/damekestre/pseuds/damekestre
Summary: Exactly what the titles says. Just some ramblings from my other stories, The Gargoyle I've Been Dreaming Of and possibly When Dreams Are Made of Magic. Little bits that don't quite fit into the story but continue to bother me to be written.*May contain vague spoilers for said stories.* *And may not be in any particular order. :)*
Series: Dreams of Reality [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1623955
Comments: 1
Kudos: 5





	1. Just A Dream

Elisa leans on the railing of her small balcony, coffee in hand. She looks upward to find her view is obscured by the surrounding buildings. She half expects to see a large form winging his way around them. 

She shakes her head with a smile as she sips her coffee. Her dream had been a vivid one, but only just a dream. 

“I wonder what the world would be like if gargoyles existed,” she muses aloud. 

She continues to contemplate this thought as her coffee dwindles. Perhaps she would be lucky enough to have the dream again tomorrow. Now wouldn’t that be something.


	2. Sleepless in New York

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Elisa has a chat with her sister.

“HEY! Are you even listening?”

Elisa snorts and nearly drops the phone as her elbow slips off the counter edge. 

“I’m here…I’m here..”

The female voice on the line is not amused. “If you don’t want to talk, Sis, just say so.”

“No. No. That’s not it all, Beth. I just haven’t been getting a lot of sleep lately.”

Concern replaces irritation on the phone. “Is everything all right? You aren’t over working yourself again, are you?”

Elisa shakes her head, forgetting her sister can’t see it. “Nothing like that. I’ve been having some pretty intense dreams lately.”

“What about?”

“Well…you were there…Aunt Maria was there…Derek was there…”

Elisa can picture the line between Beth’s eyebrows as she interrupts. “Not what I meant, Elisa.”

Elisa smiles. “I was a gargoyle that…”

Interrupting again. “Those creepy statues on buildings?”

“Not quite, but yes.”

“Why would you dream being one of those? And is everyone else one too?”

“Nope. Just me, mom, and Derek.”

“What? I don’t even get to be a gargoyle?”

Elisa laughs. “You just said they were creepy.” 

Petulance creeps into Beth’s voice. “Just not fair.”

Elisa stifles a yawn as Beth continues. “So why are these dreams bothering you? Nightmarish?”

“No. They’re just very real, almost like I’m living an entirely different life when I close my eyes.” 

“Weird. How long have you been having them?”

“Every night for about a month now.”

“You haven’t had a good night’s rest in a month?”

“Well…”

“Elisa!”

Elisa sighs as she leans back against the counter. “What do you want me to do, Beth? They’ll stop eventually.”

Real concern laces Beth’s voice. “You don’t know that, Sis. You should really see someone about this. You need sleep.”

Elisa waves her hand dismissively, again forgetting Beth can’t see her. “I’m fine, but I’ll think about seeing someone if they continue.”

“Promise?”

“Yeah. Yeah. Now what were you telling me? Something about a guy in your sociology class.”

“Oh! Right. You won’t believe what this guy…”

Elisa yawns again hugely, glad that her sister was so easy to distract. Now she just needed to find a way to stay awake for the rest of the conversation.


	3. Burning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nightmares can seem so real. But for Elisa, it is far more real than most.

Gasping for breath, Elisa awakens from her nightmare. She sobs uncontrollably as she tries unsuccessfully to pull air into her lungs. She pushes herself to the edge of the bed to stick her head between her knees. She can only manage short, shallow breaths as she tries to ward off the panic. 

She couldn’t breath. She had been in a fire and she couldn’t breath. Her feathers had been burning. Her wings had been on fire. It was only a dream, but so very real. She didn’t have feathers, didn’t have wings. But she felt the pain so very much. She was still feeling it. 

She gasps again, tears streaming down her face. The smell of burnt feathers and flesh lingered in her nose. And that wasn’t even the worst part. That had been his scream of pain. Goliath could not get to her, could not help. And she had woken up with that sound reverberating through her chest. 

Elisa slides to the floor. She finally draws a solid breath of air into her lungs. She lays her head back against the bed, endless tears still coursing down her cheeks. She couldn’t go back to that. It was too real. All of it was too real. But as soon as closed her eyes, she would be back there. In world a that was but wasn’t her own. 

She rolls her head to the side to look at the clock on her bedside table. It was almost time for her shift. And just as well. She could use the distraction. 

She shakily gets to her feet, heading for a much needed shower. She wondered how long she could go without sleep. It was something she was more than willing to test after this last dream. She would go until her body said no more and she dropped from exhaustion. Because she could not face that pain again. Not just her own, but his as well. 

Her breath catches on one last sob as she finally makes it to the bathroom.


	4. Burden

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little angst and fluff because it's always fun to write.

“It hurts to be human.”

Goliath looks down at the small woman in his arms. She looked half asleep. He loosens his wing a fraction, hoping he hadn’t been restricting her arm too badly.

“Are you in pain, Elisa?”

She shakes her head against his chest. “Not really.”

He crinkles his brow in concern, but she continues before he can respond. 

“You know, if I was still a gargoyle, this wouldn’t have happened. I could have taken her ass.”

Goliath’s chuckle vibrates through her and she finally opens her eyes. “I have no doubt of that, my love. But you are human and it is what it is as you would say.”

Elisa sighs. “It just seems so incredibly unfair. Why did I have to be a gargoyle in the dreams to just end up as a burden to you in real life?”

Goliath shakes her slightly and readjusts his arms so that he can see her better. “Burden? You will never be a burden, my Elisa. You have no idea how immeasurably grateful I am to be able to have you in my life, no matter your form. When I first awoke and realized that you were nothing more than a dream, it felt as though a piece of me had been ripped from my chest. I would not wish that feeling on my worst enemy. And I cannot even begin to imagine what you went through waking to that every day for a year.” 

Elisa looks down, trying to unsuccessfully hide her now teary eyes. “Goliath…”

He interrupts her. “It is I who has been a burden to you.”

“What?” She looks back up as a tear slides down her cheek. “Why would you think that?”

He wipes the tears from her cheek with a gentle claw. “You are so very much a gargoyle at heart, my Elisa, with your need to protect. You will do anything to protect the clan, to keep us safe from the world. And you will continue to do so when the world inevitably finds out we exist.”

“I don’t think…”

Goliath softly shushes her. “And you may not be able to tell your family about our relationship. You will lie to them and sneak around to keep what we have safe. I am the true burden, Elisa.”

Elisa pushes against Goliath’s chest and he unwraps his wings. He gently helps her to her feet as she slides off his lap. She moves to the sliding glass door and stares at her reflection, not really seeing the night beyond it. 

Goliath moves to hover behind her, wanting to touch her but unsure if he should. “Elisa?”

She takes a deep breath and takes a step back so that her back is against his chest. “How do you manage that?”

He slides an arm around her waist and pulls her closer. “Manage what?”

Elisa shakes her head, turning into Goliath to wrap her left arm around his waist. He tightens his arm a fraction as she speaks.

“Just…I’m glad you’re here.”

Goliath smiles as he rests his chin against the top of her head. “As am I, my Elisa. As am I.”

He was not completely sure of what was bothering Elisa, but he would not push the subject for now. They had time. She had no idea how wrong she was. His Elisa could never be a burden and he silently vowed right then to show her just how cherished she was.

********************************************

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one popped into my head after listening to "Hurts 2B Human" by P!nk.


	5. Fluffy Gargoyle

“Goliath is actually coming?”

David Xanatos leans back in his chair, looking over the desk at his wife. “In a guardian capacity. Detective Maza requested an interview.”

A small gasp from the study’s door grabs both their attentions. Their young daughter stands in the doorway with wide eyes. Fox sighs as she goes to her daughter, crouching down in front of her.

“What are you doing out of the playroom, sweetie?”

The little girl ignores the question as she looks up at her father. “The fluffy gargoyle is coming?”

David blinks at his daughter. “Fluffy gargoyle?”

The girl’s lips thin in the frustration of young child not being immediately understood. “Yes. The fluffy gargoyle. The one I saw on TV that has angel wings.”

He smiles. “Ah, yes. It slipped my mind that the detective was…fluffy.”

The girl looks back at Fox. “Can I meet her, Mommy?”

Fox glances up at David. “Well…She’ll be here very close to your bedtime.”

The girl gives Fox her best puppy dog eyes. “Pleeeaaase. I just want to say ‘Hi’.”

Fox sighs. “All right, Alexandra. One quick ‘Hi’ when she gets here and then right off to bed.”

Alexandra squeals and throws herself on Fox for a hug. “Thanks, Mommy!”

David crosses his arms. “I blame you for how adorably manipulative she’s turning out.”

Fox rolls her eyes as she stands with Alexandra in her arms. “Yes. That is completely all me.”

She turns and heads out the door, speaking to her daughter. “Now, let’s go find that nanny you’ve managed to escape from again.”


End file.
